The present invention relates generally to the field of electronic devices, and more particularly to a system and method improving processing and enhancing performance of a service oriented device using information tags and a communication network.
Smart labeling is the latest Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, combining the advantages of barcode, Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS) and traditional RFID solutions. RFID systems allow for non-contact reading in manufacturing and other types of environments where barcode labels may not perform properly or be practical. RFID has applications in a wide range of markets including automated vehicle identification (AVI) systems and livestock identification because of its capability to track moving objects. The technology has become a primary player in identification, automated data collection, and analysis systems worldwide.
Such systems are designed to serve mass markets with many millions of labels needed per year. For example, Philips Semiconductors"" ICODE ICs represent the state-of-the-art in smart label technology, offering a low-cost, re-programmable and disposable solution for source tagging, automatic data capture, theft protection and data storage on a product or its packaging. ICODE smart labels allow almost any item to be tagged for efficient handling. ICODE""s highly automated item scanning process does not require line-of-sight and can scan multiple labels at the same time.
ICODE smart labels offers considerable benefits in a broad variety of applications. In airline baggage tagging and parcel services, smart labels offer considerable advantages in sorting and item tracking. In supply chain management systems, smart labels overcome the limitations of barcode technology, providing improved product distribution; and in libraries and rental applications, they provide automated check-in, check-out and inventory control.
As shown in FIG. 1, a conventional RRIF system 10 consists of a tag reader 11 which is connected to a personal computer 12 (PC) through a serial port 13. The PC 12 takes action as it reads the trigger of a tag 14. Information can be exchanged via a communication medium 15 (e.g., Internet or Intranet) with a remote server 16.
The tag reader 11 typically consists of three components:
An antenna or coil;
A transceiver (with decoder); and
A transponder (commonly called an RF tag) that is electronically programmed with unique information.
The antenna emits radio signals to activate the tag and read and write data to it. The Antenna is the conduit between the tag and the transceiver. It helps control the system""s data acquisition and communication. The electromagnetic fields produced by the antenna can be constantly present or activated as needed when tags are detected by a sensor.
The data within the RF tag may provide identification for goods in manufacture, in transit or a location. Additional data may be provided for supporting applications through item specific information or instructions immediately available on reading the tag. For example, the color of paint for a car entering a paint sprayer on the production line, the set-up instructions for a configurable manufacturing apparatus or a shipment manifest.
While, as discussed above, these conventional system have many applications, they have typically been used for larger scale applications such as airline baggage reconciliation, postal tracking, road toll management and electronic article surveillance. As is apparent, such conventional system are geared to large scale inventory control or industrial and manufacturing applications. These types of conventional systems operate on dedicated systems that run custom applications. Moreover, the custom applications, while sophisticated, are designed to perform a limited number of specialized operations and tasks, and are not easily or quickly adaptable to many variations. These conventional systems generally lack the flexibility to perform in environments that require with many different inputs (i.e., compatibility) and variations (i.e., flexibility) that are required for general consumer applications (as discussed more fully below).
As is apparent from the above, a need exists for improved techniques for managing operation of RFID systems, such that compatibility and flexibility can be enhanced, particularly for consumer applications.
The invention provides a resource constrained device or terminal that allows tags or labels to be read and their content to be transmitted to a remote device. The remote device then sends a response to the resource constrained device which is process accordingly.
One application of the present invention allows such resource constrained devices to read tags and connect to a service provider to add more value. For example, the resource constrained device can be a washing machine, a microwave, a storage climate controller, other small similar devices, any other consumer product-type apparatus. In the case of a washing machine, tags of clothes can be read. Then the washing machine may connect to any one of a number of manufacturer web sites to retrieve care instructions for a specific garment. The washing machine is not limited to a particular type of tag information, manufacturer or web site for retrieving information. The request, i.e., document, sent by the resource constrained device is readable by multiple different remote servers.
One embodiment of the invention is directed to an apparatus including a label reader capable of reading information from a label, a communication unit capable of communicating information to one or more information interfaces and an operation unit having one or more operational parameters that may be adjusted. The apparatus also includes a controller arranged to (1) receive information from the label reader, (2) send a request to one or more of the information interfaces through the communication unit, (3) receive a response from the information interface, and (4) adjust the operation parameters of the operation unit in accordance with the response. The request and the response are formatted as documents capable of being exchanged in a distributed, decentralized environment.
In another embodiment, the requests sent by the apparatus and the responses from the information interface are formatted as XML documents.
Advantageously, the invention provides efficient techniques for adapting and tailoring the operating parameters of a plurality devices. The invention ensures that service requirements of any number of different items compatible and can be implemented in that device, thereby avoiding problems associated with inconsistent requirements (e.g., color clothes with white clothes). Although suited for use in manufacturing and industrial applications, the invention is particularly applicable to general consumer applications. These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description.